


Stop and Stare

by Kannraa



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-01-18
Updated: 2014-01-18
Packaged: 2018-01-09 05:10:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1141833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kannraa/pseuds/Kannraa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Just months ago, she was so happy, so ecstatic, to finally meet her online friends at school. And yet, now as she watches every one of them slowly grow distant, she’s only left wondering… How did this all go so wrong? (mainly Roxy/Dirk, bits of Auto-Responder/Roxy)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 1 just kind of describes what goes on before the school setting comes in. The actual school setting will take place during Chapter 2. Also sorry that it's a bit short; again, just a little story before the school setting actually comes in.

TG: omg omg ogm  
TT: Woah calm down Rox. I can practically see all the excitement oozing out of you.  
TG: lol shhhhh  
TG: jus so excited imma finally meet u all next week  
TG: :D  
TT: Yes, yes, and we’re getting all happy to finally met you too.  
TT: When we finally see you, it’s going to be so freaking dramatic.  
TT: Fireworks are going to shoot out in the background and melodramatic music will play as we slow-motion run into each others’ arms as the background turn into a plain of flowers and daisy just for us.  
TG: lol omg tatd be PERRRFECT  
TG: we shuld totes make taht happn <3  
TT: Yes we most definitely should.

Roxy couldn’t stop her constant smile as she spoke with Dirk. Leaning back in her chair, she took a deep breath before quickly replying to his message.

She was just so happy. Next week, oh gosh, next week! She’s been close friends with Dirk, Jane, and Jake a few years now, and they’ve never met in person before, but as it turns out, they’ll all be going to the same high school! She had only discovered this fact about a month ago, and now she certainly couldn’t wait to finally meet them once and for all.

Thinking about all the activities they could do together and all of the fun they would have with each other was just something that brought such a bright smile to her face. The thoughts had her swooning. Just a bit like how Dirk made her feel, but without all of the heartache. Why heartache? Because the man was in homo-love with one of their friends, Jake. It doesn’t help that Jane is in love with the totally oblivious adventure man too, but Roxy supposed that life was life, and she didn’t get too involved in this mess of relationships unless her friends needed her.

All that mattered was that they’re happy. As long as they’re happy, she’s happy.

TG: hey ttyl gon talk a lil w/ janey <3  
TT: Sure, go ahead. I’ll entertain myself with Jake.   
TG: oo lala gettin ur stride on mr strider ;)   
TG: gl swining him <3  
TG: *swooning  
TT: See ya. 

\-- tipsyGnostalgic [TG] ceased pestering timaeusTestified [TT] -–

Roxy loved talking to Dirk, and she still sort of wanted to, but she decided to let Dirk have some alone time with his dear beloved Jake English. Besides, she also wanted to fawn over about it with Jane.

\-- tipsyGnostalgic [TG] began pestering gutsyGumshoe [GG] -–

TG: giiiirl are u there?  
GG: Yes, yes Roxy! :B  
TG: soooooo are u as excitd as me??? ;)  
GG: Of course I am Roxy! Next week all of us are finally going to meet!  
TG: yeeessss  
TG: cant wait to see all ur bootiful facess <3  
GG: Oh Roxy, you’re so funny!  
GG: So what shall we do when we see each other face to face?  
TG: like duuuuh HUUUUUUUUGGGG  
GG: Lol yes, but of course!

And Roxy continued her sweet conversation with Jane for about another half hour before Jane left to go to this restaurant with her father. Apparently it was a celebration for Jane ‘growing up.’

She figured that Dirk would probably still be busy talking to Jake, so got up, moving to sit on the floor in front of her gaming system. With a sweet smile, she grabbed one of her kitty dolls, holding it close and just enjoying how comfortable it was before setting it back down.

Turning on her GameCube, she popped in Pikmin 2. She had already beaten it hundreds of times _(maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration)_ , but it was just as fun as always. However, as she waited for it to turn on, she suddenly frowned. Even though she planned on playing games, with no distractions for just that moment of waiting, she suddenly felt… well… lonely…

Groaning, she ran her ran her fingers through her hair, pushing it back for a moment before letting go and getting up. She pursed her lips as she stood up and left her room, making a turn to the kitchen. She couldn’t help but notice how silent it was in her home, aside from the noise of her game coming from her room. But, it was still quiet… Too quiet for her taste.

Following the routine that she was so ever use to, she blindly walked to the pantry, eyes glazing over all the bottles before grabbing one she thought would be sweet enough. And she had no trouble finding a martini glass in the cabinets of the kitchen, grabbing one of the many glasses and setting it down on the island, and with a certain ease, she poured the bottle into the glass, filling it perfectly to the brim.

And with that, martini glass in one hand and bottle in the other, Roxy made her way back to her room, all the while taking small and slow sips of her drink of delicacy. The sweet small burn that the drink left in her mouth put her at a certain ease, allowing her to relax her muscles and just remain calm.

Sitting back down at the floor within her room, with the bottle and drink sitting beside her, she reached for the controller and began her hours of fun.

\---

Yawning loudly, Roxy stretched her arms up in the air before dropping them seconds later. Finally looking away from the game, she blinked a few times to get her eyes adjusted to the dark room before looking back and quickly saving it. Jumping up onto her feet, she stumbled a bit, accidentally knocking over the empty martini glass, before catching her balance.

She stood perfectly still for a few seconds, assuring that she was good before moving back onto her laptop. With another yawn, she rubbed her eyes in attempts to rid of her tiredness as she began to pester Dirk.

\-- tipsyGnostalgic [TG] began pestering timaeusTestified [TT] -–

TG: heeeeeeey  
TG: doork struder u thr???  
TT: Sorry, no Dork Struder here, but there’s me.  
TG: looool hwey arr  
TG: whrs dirk?  
TT: Sleeping, since it is one in the morning you know.  
TG: asdfdhfnfgf rly??  
TG: ogm ive been up playn games soooo long  
TG: loool  
TT: Yes, yes you have been up so long. So, are you wasted or just tired?   
TT: I think the latter considering you have been busy playing games.   
TG: lool cooorectoooo  
TG: addf i feeell liek imma fll sleep any moment  
TT: Sleep then, princess.   
TG: kk i will OOOONLIE  
TG: iiifff u tots tuck me in2 bed nn all  
TT: Oh sweet I get to tuck a princess into bed. I feel so lucky.   
TT: Oh no, I think I’m getting a bit too nervous. This might be a bit too much responsibility for me.   
TT: Are you sure you can trust me to?   
TG: lool ys I truus u <3  
TG: cmon tiiick me to bed  
TG: *tukc  
TT: *Tucks you into bed just like how you want.*   
TG: swooooooin  
TG: tyy now I caan sleeeppppppppppp  
TG: ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp  
TT: Okay well I can assume you fell asleep now.   
TT: So I’ll be a good broprince and leave now.   
TT: Broprince, saving the drunken princess every night. 

\-- timaeusTestified [TT] ceased pestering tipsyGnostalgic [TG] -–


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Normally I wouldn't update this fast, but for now, I just kind of have a muse so updates might be a little fast for a while. Also, sorry if there's not much INTENSE Dirk and Roxy interaction so far, but I don't think we will get to that until a little later.

It was six in the morning, much too early before school started, but Roxy had awaken with mixed feelings full of nervousness but also excitement. She couldn’t believe it has been a week already, and as the summer ends, she’s preparing to return to school.

She’s actually been going to that particular high school since freshmen year, and now as a sophomore, Jane, Dirk, and Jake are finally joining her. Jane was actually coming this year instead of the last because Jane had spent her freshman year somewhere else with her cousin, John. Dirk and his younger brother, Dave, had just moved here some time ago, and Jake had moved here, now living with his step-sister, Jade she believed it was.

It was pretty weird, and they all could have met sooner, but again, they had only learned about this fact about a month ago, and Roxy wanted to make their first meet memorable and suggested they have their first big meet at school.

After five weeks later, after that long painful wait, they’re all going to see each other face to face today. Roxy could feel her heart faster at the anticipation.

Roxy had slipped on a black tank top along with a cute shirt that draped around her shoulders with her favorite pink cat on it. She also wore a dark purple skirt and black stockings to, which nicely contrasted to her white shirt and pink legwarmers.

She was in the midst of putting on a bit of make up before noticing her phone vibrate. Quickly finishing putting on the rest, finishing off with a bit of blush, she grabbed her phone and saw it was a message from Dirk.

TT: Hey, going to be there in about 30 minutes.

And for a moment, Roxy wondered why he was going to be there at six thirty in the morning until she realized that it was six thirty at the moment. So that’d mean that he would be there around seven. Taking a deep breath, Roxy figured that that would be a good time to leave as well. Although she supposed she should arrive at least ten or so minutes before Dirk, not wanting him to be alone waiting.

TG: meet @ front of library!  
TG: jic u forget!

And while she was replying to him, she figured she would message Jake and Jane the same thing. All ready and prepped, Roxy grabbed a small cute bag. She did a quick double check to make sure she had a small notebook, pens, pencils, and so on before she finally left her room.

However, when in the kitchen, she sent a glance towards the pantry door before shaking her head. She didn’t want the smell of alcohol on her breath when she met them. She’d meet them while clean and sober.

Deciding to grab something small to eat, Roxy grabbed one of the many muffins from the fridge and popped it into the toaster oven. While waiting for it to warm up, she received another message from Dirk and decided to reply to him.

TT: Of course, how could I ever forget where to go for our first meeting?  
TG: lool so are u walking ur lil bro to school?  
TT: Well the high school and middle school are near each other, but no, he’s able to find it himself.  
TT: Besides, how cool would it be if your older brother walked you to your class?  
TG: if i hada big bro id LOOOOOVE it

And as her muffin was ready, Roxy continued to chat with Dirk as she ate.

Before she knew it, she realized that it was about time to head out. Stretching her arms up, she sent Dirk one last message before finally leaving.

TG: headn out now so meet u thr <3

It was just a ten minute walk, so Roxy was there by six fifty, just patiently waiting for Dirk to come as she sat at the steps of the library. While waiting, she just hummed a bit to herself, immersing herself into thoughts of Jake, Jane, and Dirk. There was so many things she wanted to do with them and she definitely couldn’t wait to finally be able to spend time with her lovely friends.

She was getting all giddy again just at the thoughts, smiling so happily with her eyes closed.

“Ahem.”

At the sound of a small cough, Roxy immediately opened her eyes, looking up to the source of the noise. And she immediately felt embarrassed, blushing a bit at being caught, but she immediately smiled afterwards.

Jumping up onto her feet, she took a good look at Dirk. He wore a rather casual white shirt, long pants, sneakers, and that was pretty much it, asides from a dark backpack slung over one of his shoulders and his all-the-time wear shades. But, it was his face that really entranced her. It was his face. His light blond hair, his nicely framed face, and although she couldn’t see his eyes, just imagining them had her heart beating faster.

She had to take a shaky breath, inwardly telling herself to calm down before smiling wide and almost jumping into his open arms. She held her arms behind his neck, holding him close as his arms wrapped around her back, pulling her in a bit closer. And during this moment, Roxy just wanted to stay like this for so much longer. And it was so surprising, so surreal, to finally see Dirk in person and actually _see_ him in person.

This just seemed almost too good to be true. But she wasn’t going to question it. If this was all a dream, then she’d love to continue to dream on.

After a moment, Roxy finally pulled away, with a bit of reluctance, from Dirk. She noticed how she immediately missed the feeling of holding him and just being so close to him, but she kept that to herself. Taking a few steps back, she popped back down onto the library step and gestured to the spot besides her, motioning for him to join her. And he did.

“So why are you up so early Di Stri?” Because he had texted her at six thirty, and she guessed that he probably woke up earlier and just messaged her later. But she had only received a shrug in response.

“Like you said, excited to meet you guys.” And Roxy only rolled her eyes at the nonchalant response, giggling a bit before replying.

“Thanks, I can hear how much you care.” She was just messing around and was quick to change the subject, just in case he didn’t see it the same as her. “So prince charming, how’s your brother doing? Is he all excited an’ stuff to meet, um, what was it… Jade I think? It’s Jake’s step-sister who’s going to the same school as your brother.” She still pondered over it for a second before shrugging it off.

“Eh, he seemed a bit cheery to meet her I’m guessing. Of course I was cheery to meet you guys too.” He spoke with a bit of a shrug. “But he seems pretty happy finally starting middle school. Not too nervous but still somewhat.”

And again, Roxy rolled her eyes. “You Striders and your obsession with always looking cool.” She followed her little joke with a small giggle, giving him a wink before continuing. “So hey, maybe on Friday we can all go out? Because there’s this nice ice cream place nearby and it serves absolutely mouth-watering, brain-freezing, so worth it, ice cream that you would literally _kill_ for.” Maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but the small chuckle she got from Dirk was good for her.

“Sounds like a perfect plan.”

Roxy was about to reply until she felt her phone vibrate. Checking it, she saw a message from Jane.

GG: Hey Roxy, Jake and I are heading there right now!

She giggled a bit at the message, smiling a bit and as she quickly replied.

TG: ooo lala jaaaneeey <3  
TG: makn your move i see ;)

“So who are we killing?” The sudden comment made her blink twice as she turned her head to look at Dirk. “Are you not telling them about the ice cream parlor that has ice cream worth _killing_ for?”

In the midst of texting back Jane, Roxy had forgotten her own previous comment, and the realization of what Dirk was referencing had her giggling a bit. “We can discuss that when they come. That way there’d be less evidence, right?” she asked with a wink, playing along with the joke.

“But anyways, was that Jake or Jane? And are they gonna be joining us on our lovely group date anytime soon? Or are they going to be _‘fashionably’_ late?”

“Jane, and she’s heading over here with Jake. Aww, are you not enjoying our group date so far with only the two of us?” Roxy pouted, faking dramatic sadness as she looked away from Dirk and put wrist to her forehead. “I see how it is. I guess next time lil’ ol’ me will be fashionably late too just like how big Mr. Strider wants.”

She kept this act up for a while longer, but quickly broke character and laughed when she felt Dirk lightly elbowing her stomach. “Oh Ms. Lalonde, Mr. Strider would undoubtedly want to apologize by paying for your ice cream when the four of us go on our beloved, private, group date.”

The blonde girl pretended to think about it, with a hand holding her chin as she looked off into the distance. “Hmmmmm.” She continued to pretend to contemplate before finally turning to the other, giving the most serious face that she could manage. “You got yourself a deal Strider.”

And afterwards, they just kind of laughed it off together. They continued to joke together, sometimes standing up while other times making crazy gestures _(well it was mainly Roxy doing that)_ , and overall, the two just enjoyed each other’s company until Jake and Jane finally came along.

Followed by lots of squealing and hugs, the girls ended up having their own personal talk while the boys had their own. Roxy had brought up small topics, like her cats, her schedule, games that she’s played, and so on. Jane just kind of joined in and occasionally brought up topics such as baking, detective shows, and such. Roxy wasn’t really sure what the boys talked about, but she didn’t really care at that moment.

Eventually though, the group did reunite and simply had one big conversation together.

“Okay, so, ice cream parlor on Friday after school is good? Just double checking before we decide to make this official.” Roxy had a warning type of tone to her as glanced at each person, narrowed eyes flickering from one person to another. Of course even with the small laughter, she still did her best to keep a serious face.

“Yes, yes, Roxy. Friday is all good.” Jane’s cute laugh had broken Roxy’s serious façade, and she joined along, giggling a bit with Jane.

“Okay, I’ll ‘mass text’ you guys about it then. Warning, I might spam you guys a bit about it, but just so you know, you got yourself into this and I will give you a long lecture if you are confused even a teensy bit about it.”

And the rest of the morning continued on with bad jokes, much exaggeration about many subjects, and just overall fun shenanigans with each other. When the bell rung, they had all, or at least Roxy had, left with a bit of disappointment because none of them had their first class together. Of course they all shared third period and lunch together, only a few of them shared classes together without the others.

For example, Dirk and Jake shared World History second period while Dirk and Roxy shared PE six period _(last period also)_. But aside from that, their schedules were very very different.

With disappointed Roxy a bit, but she felt lucky at least having a class and lunch with all of them. With three different lunches, what were the chances that they all shared the same? So she was quite happy about that.

And although she still already missed talking to them, she had parted with a smile, waving goodbye to Jake and Jane (their classes were close to each other while Dirk’s was rather far) and she wished them goodluck before entering her classroom. Some faces were recognizable while others weren’t. With a shrug, she took a seat near one of her friends, using that term a bit loosely honestly, since the two of them weren’t really close at all but had known and made small talk with each other enough to not be strangers or acquaintances.

But it was better than being awkward by herself.

Speaking of which, Roxy hoped that Jane, Jake, and Dirk were able to make friends. She hoped they weren’t too lonely by themselves, being new to the school and everything.

Chemistry passed by pretty quick, and Roxy was able to have a small chat with Jake and Jane before heading to her World History class, which was pretty much a repeat of Chemistry: lots of free time, going over the syllabus of the class, and maybe a small activity.

Roxy practically jumped out of her seat at the ring of the bell, happy to leave the class and head to English, which she shared with their little group. She felt a bit embarrassed when she found that she was the first one there, but the teacher just instructed her to sit anywhere she wanted, which she did. She was happy to so far have teachers who let their students choose where to sit for the first day.

A few students filed in, and Roxy gave some recognizable faces a few waves, until she saw Jane. Standing up, she motioned for Jane to take a seat next to her, not sitting until Jane hurried towards her to sit down.

“So Janey, what class did you just come from?”

“Just PE. The entire period was pretty much free time because we aren’t getting dressed until the third day, since they want to give the students time to get their clothes and lockers and all.”

Giving some all knowing nods, and in reality she actually did know since again she had been here freshmen year unlike the other three, before immediately asking the next question on her mind. “So have you met anyone new?” of course the answer would be ‘yes’, Roxy was looking for specific people.

“Actually yes! I’ve met this nice girl whose in both of my classes so far. I believe her name was Latula? I could be wrong, but I hope I’m not!” Jane was momentarily distraught but she immediately returned to smiling again. “Nonetheless, she was rather nice to me and welcomed me with bright smiles! She sure had a lot of energy in her though.”

“Woohoo that’s good!” The name didn’t sound familiar to her ears, but Roxy didn’t really care. She was just glad that Jane had made a friend.

“Woah, what’s that about woohooing? Are we playing Sims or something?”

The sudden deeper but familiar voice had Roxy immediately looking towards the source, smiling and waving when seeing Dirk and Jake. She motioned for them to take the two empty seats in front of them. “Nooooo, not Sims. We’re talking about making friends, not woohooing with friends.” She tisked at Dirk, shaking her head a bit at him before laughing a bit to herself.

“So have you two made any new friends?”

Dirk only shrugged, but Jake was more than excited to talk. “There was this kind girl in my Health class who I shared an enjoyable conversation with! Of course I don’t fancy her,” Roxy glanced at Dirk and Jane. While Jane seemed a bit relieved, Dirk didn’t really seem to have any change of expression. “But we still had a rather delightful time babbling about movies and such together!”

Roxy rolled her eyes at the comment and as the bell rung again, signaling that any student who are not in the classroom by now are late, the teacher asked for their attention.

He passed out the syllabus, some other paperwork, a few worksheets to fill out about who you were, and then afterwards he just put on a movie, going by class vote. Harry Potter won and Roxy was quite happy about that.

Although the day was only half-way over, Roxy was pretty happy with how it has been going so far.


End file.
